M&M, Asian Paints defensive bets, says Bhat

M&M and Asian Paints are defensive bets, says Dilip Bhat, Joint MD, Prabhudas Lilladher.

Bhat told CNBC-TV18, “M&M numbers overall have been as per the expectations, whether it was the top-line growth, I think the top-line growth is about Rs 200 or Rs 300 crore more than what we had expected, margins at 11.6% is more or less the same as what we were thinking, but it’s the other income factor which has really helped M&M to beat the overall analysts expectations. We were expecting about Rs 870-880 crore, I think it has come to Rs 900-905 crore.”
He further added, “Overall the product mix of M&M still continues to be in their favor and their subsidiaries too are doing pretty well. So, M&M still continues to be a stock which one should acquire as a defensive bet in the long term.”
“Asian Paints have not been greatly away from the expectations. They have been more or less in line with that but more importantly I think the nature of the business as such is that it possibly still generates and inspires confidence even at these levels considering the fact that it generates a good amount of free cash. So I would still look at Asian Paints as something which one should try to acquire. Maybe wait for some kind of a small correction here and there but otherwise one should have it as a part of a defensive portfolio.”